Improvement in boiler feeders and regulators



- 2Sheets--S heet1. T. G. GARDNER.

Boiler-Feeder and Regulator. No. I63,l77. Patented May11,1875.

ATTORNEYS THE GRAPHIC CO.PHOT0 -LITH.39&4I PARK PLACEJLY.

"2 Sheets- -SheetZ.

T. a. GARDNER. Boiler-Feeder andRegulatnr.

Patented Mayl1.1875.

N0. I63.l77.

(ii/C llifiii ATTORNEYS THE GRAPHIC COPHOTO 'LITH.39&4I PARK PLACEJLY.

NITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

THOMAS G. GARDNER, OF LINCOLN, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN BQILER FEEDERS AND REGULATORS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 163, 177, dated May 11,1875; application filed January 13, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS G. GARDNER, of Lincoln, in the county ofLogan and in the State of Illinois, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Boiler Feeder and Regulator; and do hereby declare thatthe following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters of referencemarked thereon, making a part of this specification. I

The nature of my invention consists in the construction and arrangementof a boiler feeder and'regulator for steam-boilers as will behereinafter more fully set forth.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which my inventionappertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed to describe itsconstruction and operation, referring to the annexed drawings, in whichFigurel is a side elevation of my invention. Fig. 2 is a perspectiveview of the same. Fig. 3 is a detached view of a part thereof.

A represents a hollow cylinder, made of metal, capable of sustaining thesame pressure of steam that the boiler will. B is the exhaust-pipe,provided with globe-valve a, to discharge the steam from the cylinderAwhile it is filling with water. The stem of the valve a is smooth, andmade steam-tight with suitable packing, to admit of its being opened andclosed by means of devices hereinafter described. G is a steam-pipe,connecting the top of the cylinder A with the steam-space in a largepipe, D, on a level with the water-line in the boiler, said pipe D beingattached to the boiler by means of connections E E. In the steam-pipe 0,near the cylinder A, is a common globe-valve, b, and the stems of thevalves a and b are connected by means of an arm, G, in such a mannerthat oneis closed and the other opened at the same time by the strokefrom a weighted lever, hereinafter described. The pipe 0 is also to beprovided with a stop-cock, d, to shut off the steam when desired, atsome point near the boiler. The pipe 0, after passing into the cylinderA, has a-hollow T, e, screwed on its end in inverted position, so as tochange the direction of the steam, and not allow it to strike thesurface of the water in a jet from the pipe G when the valve 11 is firstopened, as it would penetrate the water, and thus cause too muchcondensation of steam. The cylinder A is also provided with awater-pipe, H, passing into it at or near the bottom. This pipe H isforked, and the two prongs provided with common check-valves marked f frespectively. The upper prong of the water-pipe H is to connect with awater-tank, which must be higher than the cylinder A, and said cylindermust be higher than the water-line in the boiler. The lower prong of thewater-pipe H connects with the lower elbow or connection E of the pipeD, said elbow connecting with the water-space of the boiler, while theupper elbow E conmeets with the steam-space thereof. I represents anelbow-lever, having one long and one short arm, which stand at aboutright angles with each other. This lever is at the angle provided withknife-edged pivots i, which pivot-edges stand at about the angle offorty-five degrees with the long arm of the lever, if ex tended. Thelong arm of the lever is provided with a ball, J, secured by aset-screw, and so arranged that when the long end of the lever is downit may be adjusted to balance the cylinderA and its contents when fullof water. The short arm of the elbowlever I is also provided withknifeedged pivots, upon which is hung a bail or stirrup, 71., connected,by a rod, k, with the cylinder, thus suspending the cylinder from thelever. The knifeedge pivots c are placed in recesses on the uppersurface of a forked plate, K, attached to the frame-work. To this plateare pivoted two segmental plates, L L, one on each side of the lever,which plates are connected by means of three screw-bolts. Two of thesescrew-bolts m and m are adjustable in long slots at in the plates, andact as stops to the weighinglever.

The adjustment is as follows: The upper stop we is unscrewed, when thelong end of the lever I is raised till the weight will just overbalancethe empty cylinder A, when the stop at is tightened against the lever atthat point. The lower stop art should be fastened at such a point thatwhen the lever rested against it the cylinder filled with water willjust overbalance the weighted lever.

It will be observed that the relative lengths of the two arms of thelever I are changed as the weighted end moves back and forth between theupper and lower stops, the short arm increasing and the long armdecreasing the twovalves a b, so'that said arm will operate againstpoints as 00 on the bar G, to move the same.

The operation of the feeder is as follows: Suppose the weighted end ofthe lever I is down against the lower stop m, as shown in Fig. 1, thesteam-valve b is closed, and the exhaust-valve a opened. The valve f inthe pipe H is closed by thepressnre of steam from the boiler. There isnow no pressure in the cylinder A, and the weight of water from the tankabove presses against the under side of the check-valve f raising it,and the water runs down through the pipe H into the cylinder A, and assoon as the cylinder is filled with water it overbalances the weight onthe lever I, and causes the lever to strike the upper stop at with aforce sufficient to cause the arm P to move the arm G to open thesteamvalve 1) and close the exhaust-valve a at the same stroke. Now thesteam rushes into the cylinder A, causing back pressure against thevalve f closing it. As soon as the cylinder has equal pressure with theboiler, the weight of the water in the cylinder pushes the valve f open,and the water-passes into the boiler; at the same time the steam ispassing through the steam-pipe (1 into the cylinder to take the place ofthe water. When the cylinder has emptied all of its water into theboiler, it becomes light enough for the ball J to overbalance it, whenthe lever I falls back against the lower stop with a force that opensthe exhaust-valve a and closes the steam-valve b, and the pressure fromthe boiler closes the check-valve f in the pipe H.

' The cylinder thus continues to operate and feed the boiler so long asthe water in the boiler is below the lower end of the steam-pipe O,which is adjusted to the desired water-line, and it gradually ceases tooperate as the water approaches the desired level in the boiler, andagain increases as the water falls below that level.

The lower end of the pipe 0 should terminate in an inverted T, as shownin Fig. 1, or be provided with a double elbow with the mouth thereof atthe water-line; or, if desirable, the pipe may be attached or connectedto the pipe D by a series of stop-cocks at different heights, by whichthe water-line may be made to coincide with any one of the cooks thatmay be desired, by which means the water-line may be raised or loweredby simply opening the cock above or below.

The object of using the pipe Dinstead of connecting the pipes G and Hdirect to the boileris to avoid the foam that rises on the surface ofthe water in the boiler being carried into the cylinder A by the steampassing through the pipe 0. By letting the feed-water pass through thelower elbow E it is always supplied with clean water.

Suitable stop-cocks should be applied in the various pipes to be usedwhen desired to take out and repair any of the other valves when out oforder.

The pipe H, when comparatively short, should be provided with jointssuitably packed to permit the cylinder to rise and fall freely; but itis preferable, where the situation will permit, to have the pipes longenough to spring up and down about two inches, and thus conform to themotion of the cylinder without packed joints.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as'new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The pipe D, provided with elbows or connections E E, for attachmentto a steamboiler, and connected by pipes O and H with the rising andfalling cylinder A, substantially as and for the purposes herein setforth.

2. The steam-pipe G, passing from the intermittently-reciprocatingcylinder A to the pipe D, and provided with a globe-valve, b, and withan inverted T at each end, substantially as and for the purposes hereinset forth.

3. The combination of the cylinder A, pipe D, connections E E, pipe 0,having valve 1), and inverted T at each end, and the forked pipe H,having valves f 1 f all substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the intermittentlyreciprocating water-cylinderA, of the exhaustpipe with valve a, and the steam-pipe G with valve 12,the two valves being connected by a bar, G, and operated by means of aweighted lever in such a manner as to open one valve and close the othersimultaneously at each stroke of the lever, substantially as and for thepurposes herein set forth.

5. The combination, with the intermittentlyreciprocating water-cylinderA, of the oscillating elbow-lever I, with adjustable weight J, andknife-edge pivots t, bearing-plate K, slotted plates L L, withadjustable stops m m, and arm P, and the bar G connecting the valves tob, all substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this12th day of December, 1874.

THOMAS G. GARDNER.

Witnesses:

H. L. PIERCE, J. W. SPELLMAN.

